The Jedi returned and the Force awakened in Orlando.

Celebration kicked off in grand fashion Thursday with the "40 Years of Star Wars" panel, moderated by Return of the Jedi and Rogue One's Warwick Davis, that brought together many of the stars and filmmakers behind the beloved saga.

To roaring applause from fans, George Lucas took the stage and shared his thoughts on the franchise, saying he created the saga for kids. "I'm not supposed to say this and I wasn't supposed to say it then, but it's a film for 12 year olds," he said.

"It was designed to be a film, like mythology of, 'this is what we stand for, you're about to enter the real world. You're 12 years old, you're going to go on into the big world... You're probably scared... And here is little idea of some of the things you should pay attention to.'"

Filoni then took the stage and shared a piece of advice that Lucas gave to him, which was to "make no decision out of fear." While Qui-Gon star Jinn Liam Neeson wasn't able to attend the panel, he appeared over a video feed shortly thereafter to reflect on the franchise, saying, "I was very honored to play Qui-Gon Jinn."

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McDiarmid and Christensen then appeared on stage together to recall the time they spent working on Revenge of the Sith. The Emperor Palpatine actor highlighted the opera scene from the film as a favorite of his, saying, "Hayden and I could really sit down and… have an evil chat. And I think it's one of the longest dialogue scenes in the whole saga.... I was allowed to tell a story and really connect, so that was exciting."

Christensen shared what it was like to work with McDiarmid on Revenge of the Sith, calling it "a real treat and a privilege." He said McDiarmid is "an incredibly generous actor, [who] took me under his wing... and I owe a lot of what I was able to accomplish in Episode III being able to work with Ian."

Like Neeson ("Qui-Gon Jinn") and Samuel L. Jackson ("Mace Windu") were unable to make it to the panel, but recorded video messages. Neeson joked that he was currently working on an unauthorized Jar Jar Binks movie that will reveal he turned to the dark side. Jackson thanked Lucas for the opportunity to work in the Star Wars universe and jokingly suggested that his character still be alive and that "Mace Windu is awaiting his return."

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Daniels, Mayhew and Williams all then took the stage together, and Daniels discussed the humorous process involved in the creation of C-3PO's suit. "I had to take my clothes off... I had to stand naked while people threw plaster at my body to make a statue of me. Do you know how disgusting that was?"

Mayhew took a moment to share a few kind words about the late Carrie Fisher (Leia Organa), saying, "she's a hell of a rebel but she's also a beautiful princess." Lucas then discussed the inspiration behind Mayhew's character, noting the idea for Chewbacca came from his large dog named Indiana. "He would ride around the in car in the front seat... and I loved that image of driving with this large... when he sat in the car he was bigger than I was."

Williams also took a moment to discuss his role as Lando Calrissian. "When I had the opportunity to work George Lucas, I thought that was like going straight to heaven.... It was a wonderful, extraordinary experience that I'm happy to have had," he said. "I didn't want to do a stereotypical kind of cliché character. I wanted to do something really special, something bigger than life."

Hamill then took the stage and thanked the fans for their passion and dedication to Star Wars. "It's really moving and certainly nothing I've ever taken for granted. I'm always stunned at the passion that has lasted all these years," he said.

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Shortly thereafter, Lucas discussed how he decided on Hamill for the role of Luke Skywalker and the year-long testing process where different groups of actors were paired to together. Lucas said he was looking to find "the group that was ready to be an ensemble and played it as old friend [and] wanted to have the chemistry of them working together built in."

Finally, Ford appeared on stage to look back on his role as Han Solo and how Star Wars has impacted his life. "It has made no difference whatsoever," he joked, adding, "It was the beginning of an incredible ride." Lucas was then asked how Ford got the part as Solo. He said that after telling Ford the film was about spaceships, he asked him if he knew how to fly. Ford then jokingly chimed in, "I said, fly? Yeah. Land? No."

Ford then took a moment to discuss what makes Star Wars so special. "You can have the most brilliant cast in the world, but they have a story to tell, and the story we had to tell was more than sufficient," he said. "It was full of humor and emotion and conflict and it was a brilliant invention of mythology that has sustained interest for over 40 years."

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Before the panel concluded, Lucas spent a few minutes talk about Carrie Fisher and reflect on the important role she played in the Star Wars saga. "She was a princess. She was a senator. she played a part that was very smart, and she was having to hold her own against to big lugs, goofballs, that were screwing everything up. But she was the boss, it was her war," he said.

"When I cast it, I said I really want someone young to play the part. And when Carrie came in she was that character," Lucas continued. "She was very strong, very smart, very funny, very bold, very tough, and there really wasn't much of a question. There really aren't very many people like her. They're one in a billion. And for this part she was absolutely perfect."

Kennedy shared a few words about Fisher as well. "There was no greater honor than that of working with the late and truly great Carrie Fisher. She was unlike anyone you've known," she said. "Her humor, her insight, her brilliance. When you associate Princess Leia, you realize that was Carrie."

Fisher's daughter, Billie Lourd, also took the stage to remember her mother, "My mom used to say she never knew where Leia ended and she began." Lourd's words were then followed by a tribute video that you can watch below.